Meloni 'surprised' by Trudeau comment on LGBTQ rights

(ANSA) - ROME, MAY 19 - Italian sources said Premier Giorgia Meloni had been "surprised' by the concern expressed by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau at the start of their bilateral meeting about the position Italy is adopting on LGBTQ rights under her government.
    The issue had not been on the agenda for the meeting prepared by the two diplomacies, the sources said.
    They also reiterated that Meloni told Trudeau that nothing has changed and that there is no cause for concern, adding that the two leaders then quickly moved on to other topics.
    The Canadian government said in a statement issued after the bilateral talks Meloni and Trudeau had "exchanged views on the importance of protecting and defending human rights, including the rights of LGBTQI+ people.
    "Meloni responded that her government is following court decisions and is not deviating from previous administrations," the statement said.
    Canadian media reported that Trudeau had expressed concern about the positions Italy is adopting on gay rights under Meloni's government.
    The Italian interior ministry, via Italy's prefects, has told city councils to stop using a procedure that had been adopted by many to register both members of a same-sex couple as the parents of a child.
    The procedure was based on the transcription into Italian civic registers of the foreign birth certificates of children conceived via surrogacy, which is illegal in Italy, or assisted fertility, which is only available to heterosexual couples here.
    This had led to concern that same-sex parent families will face multiple practical and legal problems, with only the member of the couple who is the biological parent of the child registered as its legal parent. (ANSA).